The Biden administration on Friday issued a final limiting emissions from heavy duty vehicles, prompting criticism from energy and trucking groups.
EPA in a news release said the regulations offer manufacturers more time to develop technologies needed to reduce emissions while providing for greater emission reductions than were called for in the proposed rule.
The agency said the rules, which apply to trucks and buses for model years 2027 through 2032, are technology neutral, and permit "each manufacturer to choose what set of emissions control technologies is best suited for them and the needs of their customers."
EPA estimated the rules will save trucking companies $3.5 billion annually and said its analysis has found "heavy-duty vehicle technologies, charging and refueling infrastructure and supply chains will be available to support the final standards." Critics, however, called the regulation unrealistic and too expensive.
The American Trucking Associations--a trade group representing a coalition of industry stakeholders--said the regulations will limit fleet choices to unproven battery and hydrogen technologies.
"ATA opposes this rule in its current form because the post-2030 targets remain entirely unachievable given the current state of zero-emission technology, the lack of charging infrastructure and restrictions on the power grid," ATA President Chris Spear said on Friday.
The group said the emission targets are "unachievable" and "will carry real consequences for the U.S. supply chain and movement of freight throughout the economy."
Earlier this month, ATA released a study that said converting the U.S. commercial truck fleet to electricity will require nearly $1 trillion in infrastructure upgrades, including $620 billion on charging infrastructure and $370 billion in upgrades to the power grid.
Fuel industry trade groups on Friday called on Congress to overturn the regulations and said they are weighing a legal challenge.
"There is significant uncertainty regarding the technological and infrastructure capability to comply with this rule, which may threaten the speed and cost of goods moving throughout the country," Mike Sommers, president of the American Petroleum Institute and American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers President Chet Thompson said in a joint statement.
Supporters said the regulations will help to address climate change while also improving air quality.
"The strong standards finalized today build on the 2023 rule to address oxides of nitrogen and last week's multipollutant rule that will clean up light-and medium-duty vehicles. The result will be cleaner air and better health, especially in communities with heavy truck traffic nearby," according to Paul Billings, senior vice president for public policy with the American Lung Association.
This content was created by Oil Price Information Service, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. OPIS is run independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
--Reporting by Steve Cronin, scronin@opisnet.com; Editing by Jeff Barber, jbarber@opisnet.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-29-24 1125ET
